Abstract
BACKGROUND: Emergency department (ED) physicians provide care to patients with a wide range of prognoses, and must develop care plans that anticipate patient's survival. However, the tools available to guide care planning had limited data to support their use. There is a new concern to understand if palliative care (PC) should be offered in the ED and the Palliative Performance Scale (PPS), a screening tool used in other settings in PC, has been little used in the ED. AIM: The aim of this study is to assess the prognostic value of the PPS in predicting 1, 3 and 6 months survival in patients admitted through the ED. DESIGN: This was a prospective, cohort study. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: We evaluated 147 patients at the age of 35 years and more admitted through the ED of Minia University hospital from May 1, 2016 to June 31, 2016. Each patient's PPS score was evaluated initially in the ED, with follow-up assessments of survival at 1, 3, and 6 months. RESULTS: Baseline PPS for the 147 patients was 50. The PPS score was a strong predictor of survival (Log-rank test of Kaplan-Meir P < 0.0001). Patients with an initial PPS score of 40 or less were less likely to survive at 6 months. CONCLUSION: The PPS score may predict survival in patients admitted to the hospital through the ED. The ease of use holds promise that the use of the PPS in the ED may help ED physicians predict survival and plan for a better decision.